Seven Billion Liters of Clean Water

Seven billion liters of water: That’s a big number, one that’s hard to imagine. But it has made the difference to at least 39,000 people who might have lost their lives to waterborne diseases over the past 10 years.

In 2004, one of ChildFund’s partners, Procter & Gamble, started the nonprofit Children’s Safe Drinking Water program, which provides packets of water-purifying powder to families in the Americas, Asia and Africa who don’t have reliable access to clean water. Recently, CSDW passed the milestone of delivering its 7 billionth liter of clean water, to a family in one of ChildFund’s programs in Brazil. ChildFund has helped distribute the packets. Seven billion liters equal one liter of clean water for every single person in the world, and CSDW estimates that the program has prevented 300 million days of diarrheal disease and saved 39,000 lives.

The program is part of P&G’s Clinton Global Initiative pledge to help save one life an hour by 2020.To celebrate the milestone, P&G has launched a social media drive now through April 22 (Earth Day). Every time you use the hashtag #7billionliters on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram during this week, P&G will donate an additional liter of clean drinking water. They hope to provide 1 million more liters this week!

“This new program is one example of why ChildFund values its partnership with P&G,” says Anne Lynam Goddard, ChildFund’s president and CEO. “Clean water means a disruption of poverty. Thanks to our partnership with P&G, not only are we changing lives in Brazil, but in many countries around the world, from drought-affected areas of Kenya to areas impacted by natural disasters in Indonesia and Mozambique.”